We’ll never know exactly what kind of fiction Tom Clancy would have written if he were less interested in the caliber of particular bullets and their effectiveness in dismantling emerging socialist governments, and even more so in specific sigils. required to blast a riot police through a third floor window. As charity shops across the country mourn this devastating loss on their shuttered shelves to this day, we at least get a glimpse of what such a literary venture might have been like. Oh, did you like that door? It was yours preferred the door? Soz, mate. Strategy game Tactical Breach Wizards just topped it with a new demo as part of Steam Next Fest. I’ve played it and it’s very exciting, not least because of how different it plays than I expected.
Tactical Breach Wizards comes from Suspicious Developments, founded by former games journalist and RPS contributor Tom Francis. All of these disclaimers are enough to make me hope that someone will one day pay me, Nic Reuben, to write the legally distinguishable Little Shop Of Horrors management sim of my dreams, but I digress ( call me). The studio’s previous work includes Gunpoint and Heat Signature. Both are likable, but thankfully, neither intend to infringe on my concept of my legally distinct dream management sim Little Shop Of Horrors (call me.)
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The first thing I’d like to make absolutely clear about Tee-Bee-Dubs, if only to my past self who tends to make hard assumptions based on particular screenshots, is that there is no anything to do with XCOM 2012 or its successors. Ok, so ‘nothing to do’ might be a bit of a stretch. It still offers turn-based, grid-tied tactics. Your team still boasts contrasting and complimentary skills. Also, there is still cover, although you have to actively stay behind it. In terms of how it actually feels to play, though, it’s miles away from XCOM’s long, ultra-lethal skirmishes. I’m using XCOM as an example here, but Wizard’s brilliantly designed, brilliantly solvable, room-by-room discrete puzzles mean it stands proudly and refreshingly apart from the glut of XCOM grandkids we’ve had in these 12 years! If anyone needs me, I’ll be rebuilt from the dusty salt bust I currently reside in.
Here, you’re less worried about a stray Muton headbutting your beloved sniper to death (I swear I’ve played other tactical games), and more about the clean and efficient resolution of whatever configuration of bastards and windows that throws you the actual room, as little movement as possible. All actions taken are actually just plans, as you can redo turns and shout out potential enemy responses. You don’t commit to things until you hit the rewind button at the end, like I’m frantically wishlisting the management scheme of my legally distinct Little Shop Of Horrors dreams (call me.) Anyway, this is all just a taster of the main event. An amusement for the amusement of boffining rudely from the windows.
You know you’re in for a tough time when, in addition to scores for speed and efficiency, the score screen that bookends each room summarizes your total, and I quote, defenses. In TBW’s implicit quest to throw absolutely anything that breathes through glass, some abilities are more efficient than others, but even basic attacks all feature some sort of hit. And wouldn’t you know it, these compact room levels are effectively just window distribution systems. When a room has no windows, you know Mr. Francis is serious. I’m not sure yet from the demo I’ve played if there’s any evolution to these currently Windows-only environmental hazards, but that would be neat, wouldn’t it? Not that I don’t like windows. I would have to quickly abandon the game in disgust if I didn’t.
However, there will be some evolutions, no doubt. Each level gives you a chance to upgrade your wizards skills with perk points. There are a bunch of other nice details I’d like to throw in quickly, down to the nitty-gritty. The graphics settings have cool names like ‘practical peach storms’ and such. The bit on the menu screen for the patch notes currently says ‘fixed: demo did not exist’. I love this kind of thing. It’s the kind of small attention to detail that promises similar love elsewhere, pleasant pre-gags to warm you up, like arriving at the pub to find a picture already waiting for you at the bar. It’s also just a very funny game overall, though there are plenty of hints towards a more involved story as you progress. At this point, it would take some serious magic to stop me from diving into the full game when it magically releases at some unspecified point in the future. Hopefully, sooner than my dream management SIM, the legally recognizable Little Shop Of Horrors (call me.)